Latin Trade

Browse past and current articles from this publication.

Sierra Miranda.(Chile)(Brief Article)
SIERRA MIRANDA, a Chilean mining company, sold its Sierra Miranda copper mine to CastleRock Resources, a Canadian mining company, for US$20 million. An additional US$2 million to $6 million will be . . .

LAN.(Chile)(Brief Article)
LAN, the Chilean airline formerly Known as Lan Chile, announced plans to sell up to 10% of the airline's total shares. LAN expects the sale will increase the liquidity of its shares. . . .

Farmacias Ahumada.(Chile)(Brief Article)
FARMACIAS AHUMADA, a Chilean pharmacy chain, created an independent company called Fasa Corp. that will build a new distribution center for Farmacias Ahumada. Fasa will be capitalized at US$1.6 mill . . .

PPL Corporation.(Chile)(Brief Article)
PPL CORPORATION, a U.S. energy company, sold its 8.7% stake in Chile's Compania General de Electricidad for US$123 million. PPL said the sale would flee it up to improve efficiency of its majority-o . . .

AES Gener.(Chile)(Brief Article)
AES GENER, a Chilean unit of U.S. energy company AES, issued US$400 million in bonds in international markets as part of the power company's debt restructuring plan. AES Gener said it planned to use . . .

Innovative Communication.(Central America)(Brief Article)
INNOVATIVE COMMUNICATION, a U.S. telecommunications company, acquired a 52% stake in Belize Telecommunications Corporation (BTC) from the government of Belize for US$57 million. Innovative, said the . . .

Caprock Communications.(Brazil)(Brief Article)
CAPROCK COMMUNICATIONS, a U.S. satellite provider, acquired Brazil's Blue Sky Comunicacoes and created Brazilian holding company CapRock Holdings do Brasil Participacoes to provide satellite service . . .

Brasil Telecom.(Brazil)(Brief Article)
BRASIL TELECOM, a Brazilian fixed-line carrier, signed a three-year service contract with the government of the State of Mate Grosso to modernize its information network. Terms were not disclosed. . . .

Bohler-Uddeholm.(Brazil)(Brief Article)
BOHLER-UDDEHOLM, an Austrian specialty-steel maker, acquired 100% of Brazil's Villares Metals, a manufacturer of tool steel, high-speed steel and valve steel, for US$74 million. Bohler-Uddeholm cons . . .

Georgia-Pacific.(Brazil)(Brief Article)
GEORGIA-PACIFIC, a U.S. conglomerate, sold its minority indirect interest in Brazilian pulp producer Aracruz Celulose for US$75 million to an unnamed Brazilian buyer. The company says it will use th . . .

Embraer.(Brazil)(Brief Article)
EMBRAER, a Brazilian aircraft manufacturer, received a US$320 million order for 16 of its ERJ 145LR-model jets from U.S. airline group Republic Airways Holdings. Separately, Republic Airways Holding . . .

Bolivia's Ministry of Mines and Hydrocarbons.(Bolivia)(Brief Article)
BOLIVIA'S MINISTRY OF MINES AND HYDROCARBONS blocked the construction of a US$80 million natural gas pipeline being built by Petrobras, claiming the Brazilian state-owned oil company has not fulfill . . .

Southern Cone Power.(Argentina)(Brief Article)
SOUTHERN CONE POWER, a Latin American subsidiary of U.S. power company CDC Globeleq, sold its 6.8% stake in Argentina's Costanera Central Buenos Aires to a group of Chilean investors for an undisclo . . .

Lucent Technologies.(Regional)(Brief Article)
LUCENT TECHNOLOGIES, a U.S. telecommunications company, has signed contracts to provide equipment, software and services to Andinatel of Ecuador, Hondutel of Honduras, and MoviStar in Puerto Rico. T . . .

Slim's march.(Panorama)(Brief Article)
Mexican telecommunications company Telefonos de Mexico (Telmex), which has a 95% domestic market sham, can't get much bigger at home, so it is now looking abroad for future growth opportunities. Fir . . .

Tax breaks.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
In The Best of Latin America Anniversary issue ("Best of Latin America," February 2004), on the Best Hotel for Executives in Santiago, it says, "Foreign guests who pay their bill in dollars or using . . .

Bon apetit.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
On behalf of the entire Restaurant Palacio Danubin Azul staff, I would like to express our most sincere gratitude for being recognized as part of The Best of Latin America ("Best of Latin America," . . .

Taking off.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor)
The LATIN TRADE article on the proliferation, or lack thereof, of low-cost carriers in Latin America ("Flight Plan," March 2004) would do good to look beyond Gol and Aerolitoral. For its part, Gol h . . .

New ground.(Editor's Note)(Brief Article)
Editors typically use this space to talk about what's in the current issue. This month I thought it best to talk a moment about big changes taking place here. First off, June is our first month in . . .

Buying time.(Point Of View)(Foreign investments)(Demonstrations and protests)(Brief Article)
Demonstrators slap "embargoed" signs over a U.S. flag at a Citibank branch in Buenos Aires in February to protest a U.S. judge who reportedly padlocked some of Argentina's military buildings in the . . .

Events.(Trade Calendar)(Calendar)
INTERNATIONAL FRANCHISE EXPO Event for Franchisers, Franchisees and Suppliers April 30-May 2 Washington, D.C. Contact: Terry Hill Tel: [1] (202) 628-8000 Fax: [1] (202) 628-0812 ifa@fr . . .

Privatizations.(Trends)(Table)
PRIVATIZATIONS SECTOR PROJECT DESCRIPTION AVIATION BRAZIL Maringa Airport 35-year operating concession CHILE Region IV airport 20-year conce . . .

Key indicators.(Trends)(economic indicators)(Illustration)
LATIN TRADE INDEX * % CHANGE DECEMBER 02/03 Total Trade December 03 US$ 55.6 billion . . .

Titles of interest.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
In Origins of the Crash (Penguin Books), business journalist Roger Lowenstein explains the 2000 stock market debacle and the subsequent increase of corporate scandals in the United States. Rather th . . .

Battling up the corporate ladder.(Book Review)
Career Warfare David F. D'Alessandro McGraw-Hill US$21.95 On the cover of David D'Alessandro's latest contribution to the idea of branding, Career Warfare, an early Imperial Chinese soldier stands . . .

Cruising South.(Executive Travel)
"It's the biggest invasion since 1982," claims John Fowler, Falkland Islands tourism manager, as 3,000 cruise ship passengers disembark in Stanley on Feb. 28. On this summer day, the invaders were n . . .

Travel hot tips.(Executive Travel)(Brief Article)
* In a program to promote tourism in Chile, LanChile Airlines will allow passengers to purchase passes valid for travel to multiple Chilean destinations at savings up to 70%. Passengers must purchas . . .

Empty skies.(Executive Travel)(Brief Article)
International tourism took a nosedive worldwide in 2003, plunging by a record 1.2%. War, communicable diseases and a weak global economy contributed to the decline. South America proved to be an att . . .

Finger wagging.(Executive Travel)(Tourism)(Brief Article)
A Brazilian decision to photograph and fingerprint U.S. citizens upon arrival seems not to have driven down tourism interest in the country--at least initially. The tit-for-tat decision was in respo . . .

Goooool! A soccer tournament in Brazil's Amazon is a win for a community and a business.(Executive Travel)(Calderaro Communicati
In Brazil, uma pelada, slang for a soccer match, is akin to a national religion. Every Sunday, the faithful don uniforms, remove their shoes and head for the beach. Quickly, the players open a clear . . .

Mexico and Fonatur: celebrating 30 years of success in tourism investment.(Special Advertsing Feauture)(Advertisement)
As the destination of choice for nearly 20 million tourists every year, Mexico offers some of the world's best opportunities for private investment. New properties currently being developed by Mex . . .

Cost-saving IT solutions: a new wave of profit for Latin American business.(Special Advertsing Feauture)(Advertisement)
The current trend toward maximizing profit by outsourcing and refreshing information technology (IT) equipment is presenting new opportunities for many companies in Latin America, according to indus . . .

New investment creates success in Barbados.(Special Advertsing Feauture)(Advertisement)
Investors are enjoying success in Barbados, which offers a wealth of opportunity in an environment of natural beauty and economic stability. Several new commercial and residential developments are . . .

Trinidad and Tobago is the premier candidate to host the FTAA Secretariat.(Special Advertsing Feauture)(Free Trade Area of the A
A world of natural advantages make Trinidad and Tobago an exceptional investment opportunity and the premier candidate to win the headquarters of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA). Strate . . .

Growth leads to investment in the Caribbean.(Special Advertsing Feauture)
Investment in the countries of the Caribbean is expected to increase as the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) predicts continued growth over the next year in the economies of the region. CDB Presiden . . .

Transantiago.(Out Of The Box)(Brief Article)
The Chilean Ministry of Transportation and Telecommunications will accept bids through June from companies competing to expand Santiago's bus service. The ambitious US$1.6 billion project, called Tr . . .

Panama Canal.(Out Of The Box)(Brief Article)
The Panama Canal Authority raised towing service tariffs for cargo ships by 5.9% and line handling services by 6% in March. Separately, the canal has begun using the Internet and wireless communic . . .

Track record: private companies in Brazil take the lead in railroad revitalization.(Trade Lanes)(Caramuru Alimentos invests in t
Once the workhorse of Brazilian industry, railroads have run down over the past few years from lack of investment. Instead of waiting for the government to invest an announced US$2.7 billion to mode . . .

The road to broadband: Mexico's cable TV providers want to sell high-speed Internet. So does Carlos Slim.(Connection)
Getting broadband Internet into the homes of millions of ordinary Mexicans is turning into a scramble. Regulatory and market changes have cable TV companies rushing to upgrade their networks to broa . . .

A beautiful mouse.(Connection)(Brief Article)
When it comes to exporting quality mice, the United States heads the list with Mickey Mouse. But for a handful of Argentine scientists, Mickey Mouse takes a back seat to the TH-CRE, a species of gen . . .

DFW international cargo figures surge ahead: strong growth continues from Asian and European markets.(Focus On)
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) has become one of the star cargo gateways of the world, spurred by red-hot economic growth in Asia and the recovering economies of the United States and . . .

How high? It's getting harder, and more expensive, to sell to the world's biggest consumer.(Logistics)
Exporters to the United States after Sept. 11, 2001 have had to make major adjustments to meet a mountain of tough, new federal regulations, rules that continue to pile up. Over the coming months, U . . .

Sidelined: Fox took office promising reform for a country badly in need of a change. Then, nothing happened.(Investment Guide)
To best see the economic effects of Mexico's current political paralysis, stop in at the office of Jose Garcia Briones, director of energy services at KoSa, a multinational manufacturer of polyester . . .

Best corporate citizens 2004: Latin America companies set the standard for corporate citizenship in the region.(Interview)
Oded Grajew, president and founder of Brazilian social responsibility organization Instituto Ethos, recently proposed making Porto Alegre the world's capital for good citizenship. While perhaps prem . . .

Bloc heads: where to put the home of the world's biggest trade area? Why, come right this way.(Trade)(headquarters of Free Trade
The leading candidates for the headquarters of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)--Atlanta, Miami. Panama City and Port-of-Spain are fighting to outdo each other to offer the best economic p . . .

Lots of gold, no rush: a multi-billion dollar gold mine in Venezuela sits and waits for someone, anyone, to dig it up.(Mining)
Take three Canadian mining corporations, give them the continent's richest gold-mining concession, throw in a bit of bush pilot history and a few lawyers, and what do you get? In Venezuela, not one . . .

The Bentonville menace: Wal-Mart is changing the face of Latin America labor and life--and it ain't pretty.(Silicon Jack)
If you wonder why more Latin American countries aren't jumping on the free-trade bandwagon, look no further than the cutthroat business practices of the world's largest private company, US$245 billi . . .

Big company watch: Latin American sales in US$ millions as of Dec. 31, 2003.(Trade Talk)(Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson)(Brief
[GRAPHIC OMITTED] DEAR SHAREHOLDERS ... * AVON The cosmetics company's sales in Latin America, which represent a third of total revenue, rose 6% in 2003 to US$1.7 billion, an all-time high. In . . .

Home run.(Trade Talk)(Mexican Americans)(Brief Article)
For years, Mexicans living in the United States have been sending money to buy food and clothes for family in Mexico. Today, more and more are buying houses back home, and lending agencies are takin . . .

Your number's up.(Trade Talk)(Lula da Silva, Luiz Inacio)(Brief Article)
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva recently fired Waldomiro Diniz, an aide to Jose Dirceu, Lula's chief of staff, for accepting a campaign donation from a man who runs illegal numbers gam . . .